Julius was born on June 15. He was struggling to stay healthy. He received two plasma transfusions and around-the-clock intensive care. Officials said he has had trouble nursing since he was born, which has prevented him from getting essential antibodies from his mother.

“It’s hard to put our emotions into words right now,” said Don Hutchinson, president and CEO of the Zoo. “Our veterinary staff and our animal care team put their lives on hold to try and nurse Julius back to health, and every avenue was explored. Sadly, he was unable to survive in spite of their Herculean efforts.”

Even with medical interventions, Julius remained a critical patient.

“His condition took a sharp turn downward overnight, and we had to make the difficult decision to humanely euthanize him. This is certainly not the outcome we were hoping for, but we rest assured that we did everything we possibly could medically to prevent him from any distress,” said Dr. Samantha Sander, associate veterinarian at the Zoo.